Automatically-operated door.



Patented June 18, 1918.

G. 0. SAUERMANN.

AUTOMATICAL'LY OPERATED DOOR. 'APPucATloN man 1uNE15. 1915.

1 aumento@ aflo'wwm` GUSTAVE 0.v SAUERMANN, OF KENESAW, NEBRASKA.

AUToMATmALLY-OPERATED Doon.

Specification of Letters Patent. vPajeIlted June 1.8, 1918.

Application led J une 15, 1915. Serial No.34,279;

To all whom z't may concern:

Beit known that I, GUsTAvE O. SAUER- MANN, citizen of the United States,residing at Kenesaw, in theV county of Adams and State of Nebraska, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in'Automatically-OperatedDoors, of which the following is a specification.

Thisinvention relates to doors and more particularly to an improvedmeans for automatically opening and closing a sliding door.

The object of this invention is to provide a door opening means that ispreferably arranged in the path of travel of livestock and includes apair of pivotally connected platforms that, by the weight of an animalthereon the door will be opened and after the animal has passed oill vofthe platform, the door willy be closed.-

Another object of this invention is to provide an automatically operateddoor including'a pair of platforms, the same being so constructed las toprovide no openings or crevices linto "which animals are liable to placetheir feet. l

A still *further object of this invention is to provide a device that`is'simple in construction, efiicient inoperation, and consists of aminimum number of parts.

With these and other objects in view, this invention consists of certainnovel features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts, aswill be hereinaftervmore fully described and claimed, and shown in theaccompanying drawings wherein z- Figure 1' is a longitudinal section'vie of the improved device;

Fig. 2 is a section taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged view in elevation of one of the sheaves used withthis device;

Fig. 4 is a section taken on line 4--4 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the parts by reference numerals, a pair of uprights aredesignated by the numeral 10, each having a groove 11 formed thereininto which the ends of the door 12 are positioned and the same areslidable therein. A supporting means for a pair of platforms used toopen this door is designated in its entirety by the numeral 13 and theplatforms 14 and 15 are movably connected to this supporting means 13.Blocks 16 are secured at one end of the supporting means 13 andthesupporting joists 17` of the platform 14 have offset ends 18 throughwhich the pins 19 are passed to pivotally-secure theplatform 14 to theblock 16. Pulley wheels 2O are carried by the` support 13 and thesupporting joists 21 o the platform 15 have offset ends 22, the saidends 22 being in engagement `with the.

pulley wheels 20 to facilitate thek movement ofthe platform-15.-Intermediate the blocks.

allysecu-red by the rod 26 passing `through the overlapping ends of thekjoists 17 and 21 and, therefore, movement of one of the platforms willobviously move the other. The abutting ends of the platforms 14 and 15are so made as to form the substantially concavo-convex joint, the endsofthe platform being indicated by the numeral 27 and the abuttingportion ofthe support made to conform 'to the -curvature of theend ofthe platform, designatedby the numeral 28 and by'this arrangementregardless of the position of the platforms relative to the support 13,the same will always be in engagement and no opening ory crevice will behad between thesame. v r Brackets 29 are secured to the uprights 10and'journaled therein, 'is a shaft 30, the same 'having thereon a pairof spirally` arranged sheaves'31.' @ver these sheaves 31 are trainedcables 32 having one of their ends in connection with the door12,'as1indicated by the numeral 33 and at the opposite ends thereof arepositioned weights 34. Secured to the shaft 30 are platform connectingcables 35 that are secured about the opposite extremities of the shaftand passed through the openings 36 in the support '13 and are inconnection with the joists 17 of the platform 14. Y

The operation of this device is as follows: An animal treading on theplatform 15 will, by its weight, move the said platform vdownwardly andthe same being pivotally lconnected with the platform 14 will likewisemove the platform 14 downwardly until the same are in engagement withthe sill 23.- It being obvious that the platform 14 is pivotally securedto the sup ort means 13 and the platform 15 is' capa le of movementrelative to the support means 13 in that the offset ends 22 of thejoints 21 are positioned on the pulley wheels 20. As the platforms aremoved to a position as above set forth, the cables 36 will rotate theshaft 30 and move'the door 12 to an open position by means' of the cable32 being trained over the spirally arranged shea-ves 31. It is tobev tothe position asv show-n in Figs. 1 and 2'- an'd, the-samebygravityfollows to the position asshow'n inlFigs; land 2. If so desired' mea-nscan! be 'provided onl the standardy 10.' wl'i'ereby the door 12v can beheld in its openl positiom v It. is obvious that-minor changes may bemade in the form` and construction off this device without-departingfrom the material partsY thereof. Itisgtherefore, not wished toconflnethelconstruct-ion to the exact form herein describedandlclaimedbut it is wished to'include allsuchl as properlyY come within theAscope* claimed.

What is? claimed: is:-

1. In va deviceof'r the described, a painofstandards, a door slidable'in said standards,fa.-v support,l a pair of hngedly secured platformsections in connection with said support, the l abutting' edges of saidsup- Vportf an'clf said plat-form sections being rounded sothabwhentheplatform sections are-moved the roun'dededges will b e' inen- 1 ,fgagemeiit with each other, a rotatable shaft carried by saidsupports having' a pair of sheavesfmo'unted4 thereon, cables connected-at-'ore' end-to the door and trained lover the respective sheaves,count-erweights connected to the other end ofthe cables, means?operatively com'iec'ting said platform sections with said shaft wherebywhen a weight dehinged at their inner ends, and a cable havingI an endattached tothe shaft and4 wound thereon, and having its opposite endconnected with one Aof the platform sections, whereby when a weightdepres'seseither platform section,l the door slides .upwardly into openposition, said' door closing. by gravity and lraising ythe platformsections when the weight is removed. h

3. Inv combination, a verticallysliding door, a' shaft above the door, aspiral sheave pulley on' the shaft, a cable attached at one end to thedoor and having-,its oppositel end passing around the spiral sheavepulley, a counterweight atV the other endI of thecable, a yplatform*'section at Ieach side of the door, the two sections beingghing'edat'their inner ends, and a cable havingv an end attachedto the shaftand'wound thereon, and havinn its opposite end connected with oneofthepat formsections, whereby when a weightdepresses either platform'-section, the. door slides upwardly into open position, said door closingbygravity and raisingthe platform sections when the'5V weightisirem(")ved1 In testimonyy whereofl ailix'my 'signature in presence oftwo witnesses.

eosin/wn` oa SAUERMANN.

-Wit-nesses: p

L.L. WEAVER, FRAINK E.'HU'rcHINsoN. l

